Generally, an electrical connector includes some form of insulative or dielectric housing which mounts one or more conductive terminals. The housing is configured for mating with a complementary mating connector or other connecting device which, itself, has one or more conductive terminals. A connector assembly typically includes a pair of mating connectors, such as plug and receptacle connectors sometimes called male and female connectors. The interengaging terminals of the connectors, themselves, may be male and female terminals.
Some electrical connectors are shielded connectors. In other words, the mating interface of a connector (i.e., where the terminals of the connector mate or engage the terminals of the mating connector) is surrounded by a conductive shield, cover or shroud which typically is fabricated of metal material and provides for EMI and RFI protection. The shield preferably covers the termination area of the connector.
Some electrical connectors are designed for mounting on a printed circuit board. The terminals of the connector have tail portions for connection, as by soldering, to appropriate circuit traces on the circuit board. It is desirable to be able to inspect the solder connections to ensure that there are good solder joints formed between the connector terminals and the circuit traces on the board. Unfortunately, problems are encountered with shielded connectors of the character described above, because a portion of the shield must be open to allow for such inspections. When there is considerable electromagnetic interference, this opening must be closed after inspection. It has been proposed to close the opening, which typically is at the rear of the connector, by a shield cover or door which slidably moves generally parallel to the printed circuit board. However, this creates additional problems because, to allow the shield door to move parallel to the circuit board, valuable space or “real estate” must be provided rearwardly of the connector. With the ever-increasing miniaturization of such electronic apparatus, this lost space on the circuit board is very costly. The present invention is directed to solving these various problems.